confianza.

Confianza. It is a little Spanish word that is hard to translate. Roughly speaking, it means ¨trust.¨ But that does not quite cut it. As a student at the Casa de la Solidaridad, we used to talk about confianza as ¨a willingness to share yourself with someone.¨ The Salvadorans with whom I have confianza are those who have shared their life stories - their joys and their struggles - and with whom I feel safe. So, trust doesn´t quite cut it. I trust my dentist, but would I sit with him, sharing a coffee and a piece of pan dulce as he tells me about how proud he is of his daughter, about his sick father, about his difficulties finding a job? That´s confianza, and that is what so many Salvadorans give so easily.

For the past week I have been living with a homestay family in Mejicanos, an urban neighborhood in San Salvador, not far from San Ramon, where I work. They are great. I live with Ana Miriam, the executive director of ANADES (it´s kind of a big deal), and her husband, Miguel, who works as Hospital Rosales. Her mother Ilda also lives with the family, and she has been great - taking care of me like any abuelita should. She shows me where the buses are and tells me where I shouldn´t go, and makes sure I am well fed and always leave the house with an umbrella (because, fijate bien, we are in the rainy season). There is also Karla, a university student my age who speaks English very well and enjoys watching all my favorite shows. (We also bonded over Twilight. She said she´d lend me Breaking Dawn in Spanish. Meg, you´d be so proud). And then there are two six year old twins, Ana Belen and Miguel, who are both a handful, but very sweet and loving. Ana Belen loves her food, and she is very creative, making up stories to tell me before I go to bed and coloring some beautiful pictures from my Disney Princesses coloring book. (Don´t worry, roomies, I wouldn´t let her rip out the ones you´ve colored for me). And Miguel, though much smaller than Belen, doesn´t let anyone push him around. He has so much energy, which somtimes manifests iteself in tantrums, but they pass quickly, and when he goes around calling everyone ¨mi amor¨and pretending to be a little kitten licking my toes, it´s hard to be angry with him. They both remind me so much of my nephews, it makes me miss them like crazy. They too fight over who is going to take a bath first, and they go to McDonalds just for the toys. This week, Bakugan. SCORE!

It still feels a little awkward living in someone else´s home, using their bathroom, having them insist on serving me my meals and even cleaning my dishes. But poco a poco, I have been trying to develop a little confianza with the family, so we can all feel a little more at home.

This is how it goes:

Ilda, will you take me to mass with you Sunday? Can you show me how you make those pupusas? Karla, does this skirt looks good on me? Miguelito, do you want to play catch? Want to see photos of my family? Can I help you tie those shoes, Belencita linda?

basics

I made it!

I'm currently getting settled in and spending this first week getting to know the area where I'm living, visiting friends, and getting to know my host family.

If you want to send me goodies, such as letters, photos, coloring books or other fun things, mail to

Asociacion Nuevo Amanecer de El Salvador
Col. El Triunfo Final Pasaje Molina #14, San Ramon
Mejicanos, Apartado Postal 567
Departamento de San Salvador
El Salvador, Central America.


Also, fun fact: I clearly have not learned my way around the kitchen yet, and on my first day with my new family I put salt in my coffee instead of sugar. Ooooops.

Real update soon.

love,
liv

please help me get to el salvador

Dear friends,

Welcome.

This is the place where you can keep up with me during my time in El Salvador over the next two years. I'll periodically write reflections, news, updates, and share pictures about my life and work.

But first, I need to ask for a little help.

As you may already know, in August I will begin my work in San Ramon, an urban community on the outskirts of San Salvador. I will be working for an organization called Asociacion Nuevo Amanecer El Salvador (ANADES), or New Dawn Association. They are a certified 501(c)3 non-profit, formed during the Salvadoran civil war to provide services for children who had become orphans. Now, they have services across the country ranging from mental health clinics to an organic farm, but I will be working for their kindergarten program in San Ramon - Centro Hogar, or the Home Center. I will be the director of a scholarship program, Programa Velasco, which connects sponsors in the US and Europe with kids whose families cannot afford the school's tuition. In addition to raising money and coordinating the scholarships, I will also work closely with the families in the community through Programa Velasco's personal formation and development program, as well as a new micro-loan program for women to start small businesses.

Click on any of the links above if you want to learn more about ANADES, Programa Velasco, and the people I will be working with!

When I go to El Salvador on August 17th (start your countdowns!), I will be joining several other lay missioners as part of the Volunteer Missionary Movement (VMM). VMM is an international lay mission organization, with missioners from Europe and the United States serving in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Its roots are in the Catholic social justice tradition, but VMM is a truly ecumenical organization. There are already several VMM missioners working and living in El Salvador, so I will have a lot of support from them as well as the whole VMM community.

In addition to the spiritual, emotional, and personal support I receive from the VMM community, VMM supports me financially - for everything from health insurance to the cost of my personal expenses like rent, food, and transportation. On average, VMM spends $18,000/year for each missioner. I am asked to raise $5000 to help defray some of those costs.

If you would be willing to donate, I would certainly appreciate every cent. Even small donations add up!

You can donate online by going to VMM's Donate Now page and pay with a credit card or PayPal account. *Just please make sure to include a note that your donation is to be contributed toward my total! If you don't know how to do that or donated without mentioning my name, just shoot me an email (olivia.amadon@gmail.com) and I can make sure your donation is counted toward my goal.*

You can also send VMM a check. Just download VMM's donor form, make sure that you've written my name in the "in honor of" line, and send everything to

Volunteer Missionary Movement (VMM)
Attn: Development Office
5980 W. Loomis Road
Greendale, WI 53129


If you would like to contribute a small donation on an automatic monthly basis, you can become a Covenant Partner. Just click here to learn more!

Even if you cannot donate, thanks for the joy you all bring to my life! Please send prayers and emails while I'm gone, and come visit if you can.

love,
liv

about the title

The birds' favorite songs
You do not hear,

For their most flamboyant music takes place
When their wings are stretched
Above the trees

And they are smoking the opium
Of pure freedom.

It is healthy for the prisoner
To have faith

The one day she will again move about
Wherever she wants,
Feel the wondrous grit of life-
Less structured,

Find all wounds, debt, stamped canceled,
Paid.

I once asked a bird,
"How is it that you fly in this gravity
Of darkness?"

She responded,
"Love lifts
Me."

- Hafiz
from The Gift, translated by Daniel Ladinsky